Standards & Regulations
IFT provides comprehensive information to members on current standards and regulations impacting the profession as well as those currently in development.

Standards

What are Standards?
Standards.gov supports the requirements of The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA), which directs U.S. Federal agencies with respect to their use of private sector standards and conformity assessment practices. According to the NTTAA, standards or technical standards are defined as common and repeated use of rules, conditions, guidelines or characteristics for products or related processes and production methods, and related management systems practices. Listed below are significant standards for the U.S. and global spectrums for IFT members.

U.S. Standards

Global Standards

Codex Alimentarius CommissionThe Codex Alimentarius Commission is the international organization created by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization to develop food standards, guidelines and other texts under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme, to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair trade practices in the food trade. IFT has been involved as a nongovernment organization with observer status in Codex since 1992. IFT participates in activities of select Codex committees and task forces, represented by IFT Codex Subject Experts.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
ISO develops and publishes international standards relating to, in the food system, topics including food ingredients, food safety and quality, and nanotechnology through a network of national member standards institutes of 162 countries.

Food Chemicals Codex
The FCC is a compendium of internationally recognized standards for the authenticity, purity and identity of food ingredients. The compendium features about 1,100 monographs, including food-grade chemicals, processing aids, foods, flavoring agents, vitamins, and functional food ingredients, as well as informational chapters to aid the analyst on topics such as adulteration, analytical methods and more. The FCC plays a key role in safeguarding commerce and public health by providing essential criteria and analytical methods to authenticate and determine the quality of food ingredients. FCC standards are beneficial to all players in the food industry as agreed standards between suppliers and manufacturers aid in distinguishing genuine products from inferior or adulterated ingredients and substances, thereby helping to make the food supply chain safer and assuring consumers of the quality of the food products they eat.

Regulations

What are Regulations?Regulations are mandated and must be met under specific laws as well as implement general agency objectives. Voluntary standards may be used in regulations under adoption, guidelines, regulatory guides, strong deference, and basis for rulemaking or difference in lieu of developing a mandatory standard. Listed below are significant regulations for the U.S. and global spectrums for IFT members.